A blog dedicated to the New York Mets with some other baseball thrown in.

Wednesday, December 07, 2005

I heard from a friend, who heard from a friend, who heard from a friend...

The Mets want both MacDougal and Affeldt. KC does not want to do that so the Mets are looking to expand the deal to get the both of them. The other name being tossed around is Victor Diaz. Now, I am of the mind that the Royals have the upper hand in that deal. I would still look long and hard at it, but ultimately it is a tough call and why I'm happy I'm not a GM. I'm on the fence because I want those two arms, but they are erratic. Diaz can hit 20+ homers in '06 if given a full time job. Is that giving up too much? Probably, but I do not know realistically what Benson can net back. You hear conflicting things that Benson is a hot commodity and that he is not so much a hot commodity.

If he is, surely Diaz and Benson are worth more than two guys with stuff and a lack of consistancy. With all that being said, I would still consider it since the Mets have some options with Nady. Though he profiles better as a platoon guy, it is still something to think about with Milledge possibly ready to take over mid 2006 and Angel Pagan being able to give it a go should he faulter. Something tells me Nady would still do an admirable job if given an everyday shot, but Omar certainly has some tough decisions to make. I'm 50/50 on the deal if Diaz is involved, but for once, I would like the Mets to get the better end of the deal. I think they did that in the Delgado deal, but that is a rarity.

ESPNRadio reports that if Omar wants Zito, it would be Milledge straight up. However, the prospect of giving up Diaz and Milledge disturbs me. Once again, I do not evny Omar. He has everything he wants practically in front of him, but there are consequences.

In fact, the Burnett deal might keep Zito in Oakland. Zito is 27, left-handed and has a 86-53 career record. One close friend said Zito wouldn't sign right now for anything less than the Burnett deal, and is expecting to sign for "considerably more." So while Billy Beane had intended to explore the Zito trade market once the free agents had signed, he might hold onto Zito and make a run at the 2006 season.

I'm taking one for the team. Ed Coleman is on Mike and the Mad Dog and I will listen to it and I will report back.

Mets News

The Ken Oberkfell (or anyone else for that matter) For Manager Movement

"No one really gave me credit for doing what I did. They just criticized me," "The manager countered that Wright might not have had as good a year had the manager not protected the youngster by placing him down in the order early in the season."

Riiiiiiiiight. That does not even deserve a response.

"I guess I'm a show-me guy, I want to see that David can keep making the adjustments," Randolph said.

I'm a show me guy too. Show me why you should still employed. Hint #1, treat your best hitter like your best hitter. Don't punish someone for being young.

"I let them play," Randolph said. "It's not always going to come down to average and statistics. It's just how you play the game. Managers look at players and it's what they see."

Your gut decisions have worked out oh so well so far, so why change?

"He was just one of the guys we had," Randolph said. "Who knows? We may even pick someone up. The competition just started. It doesn't change the whole picture at second base for me at all. The fact that he's not here, we have to just move on."

That was when Brett Boone retired and that was followed up by...

"Keppinger really wasn't in the mix. Keppinger was kind of a long shot, and he's still kind of a long shot, but he's there."

Willie, wait. I thought you just said the competition just started? Now Keppinger had no shot and since A Hern has been playing short (a very foreign position from second) he is out too?

"I'm not concerned at all"

That was Willie commenting on Victor Zambrano's inability to actually resemble a good pitcher. I know Willie is not going to throw his guy under the bus, so I give him a free pass, but I wouldn't mind a comment about him needing to step up and perform in the next week or so.

"He's still a nice player, but let's not get crazy," Randolph said. ~ 4/15/08

Willie telling Angel Pagan to not get too excited because chances are, he really is not good.

"He's not going to be in that tree all year," Randolph said of Pagan, who is also tied with David Wright for the team lead with 10 RBIs. "We've seen a lot of players come through the pike and do what Pagan's doing, so let's keep this in perspective." ~ 4/15/08

Willie 'motivating' his team in their time of need.

"I like Luis in the No. 2 spot," Randolph said. "He's still one of the better No. 2 hitters in the game." ~ 4/15/08